INTELLECTUAL EDUCATION. 



With refpeft to the operations of the abftraftive power, 

 as ncceflary in the procefTes of the imagination, tiiey may 

 be very much left to themfelves. We have no wifh tliat 

 the imagination fhould be facrificed ; for it is of great im- 

 portance in the conduft of life, in the purfuits of faience, 

 2nd in fpiritiiahzing the mind ; but where there is that cad 

 of mind which will lead to form new combinations from its 

 conceptions ; all that is neceffar)' is, to give tiie obfervation 

 frequent opportunities of exercife, in'various fituations, 

 upon the objefts of fenfation, that they may be feen under 

 different afpefts, and in different combinations. It is in our 

 own power, at any time, to fee only parts of an objecl ; and by 

 dwelling upon thefe parts, we can form conceptions of them 

 detached from others with which they are connetled. Hence, 

 the vifual conceptions are very eaiily fubjefted to the ab- 

 ftraitive power ; and as to the objects of hearing and fmell, 

 they have fo httle neceflfary connection with the objects of 

 fight, the fenfations can be received, and tlie conceptions 

 reproduced, fo completely independent of vifual impref- 

 fions or conceptions, that there is flill lefs difficulty in exer- 

 ciGng the abftraftive power upon them. Where, therefore, 

 the imigination has any confiderable flrength and aftivity, 

 the abicraftive power may be expefted to be fufficiently 

 at its command without direft cultivation. Where, how- 

 ever, the imagination is weak or fluggifh, it may be ad- 

 vifable, by leading the attention to feparate fenfations, and 

 to parts of objefts diftinft from the whole, and by directing 

 the obfervation to the fame objefts under different points of 

 view, to cultivate the ablhaClive power with fpecific re- 

 ference to the conceptions as materials of the imagination. 

 And this fhould occafionally be done with a itill higher aim, 

 to acciiltom the mind to feparate the combinations prefented 

 to it, in order that thofe hafty, cafual, and erroneous afTo- 

 ciations may be weakened, which fo often completely mif- 

 lead the judgment, and which, where they do not direftly 

 and bbvioufly affeCl it, imperceptibly warp it, and mate- 

 rially increafe the difficulties which obftruA the reception of 

 truth. 



VII. By the Memory we underftand that power which 

 retains ideas, and which can bring tliem back again to the 

 view of the mind. The latter ad is generally known by 

 the name of rtcoileflion ; the former, as Mr. Stewart has 

 obferved, has not yet received any appropriate appellation. 

 It might be called retention ; but it appears decidedly pre- 

 ferable to appropriate this appellation to that capacity, or 

 power of the mind, by which relifts of fenfations are re- 

 tained, by which, in fatt, fenfations produce ideas. 



It is totally unnecefFary that we fhould dwell upon the im- 

 portance of this power of the mind. Were it nut for the 

 <;apacity of retaining ideas from fenfations, man would be a 

 being of mere fenfation. But without going to this ex- 

 tent, if the retaining power of the memory were greatly 

 impaired, pall impreifions, pall reafonmgs, pail conclufions, 

 j!ait experience, would be of no fervice to the mind in the 

 uonducl of hfe, or in the purfuits of fcience ; and without 

 the .power of recalling them to the view of the mind when 

 required by circumilances, they woidd in a great meafure 

 lofe their efficacy and advantage. To make the memory, 

 however, duly fubfervient to the ufual objects of hfe, and 

 to the acquilition of knowledge, it mull be placed under 

 the regulation of the judgment ; and an accurately reten- 

 tive nicmory, united with facility of recollection, accompa- 

 nied with, and guid^d by, a found judgmcn:, may be con- 

 lidered as tiie fummit of excellence in this br.inch of the 

 mental faculties. 



To en'.cr into the proper difcipline of tlie memory, when 

 the individual is fo far advanced in the cultivation of the 



underftanding, as to be able to regulate the culture of In's 

 own mind, is not our province : and if it were, we fhould 

 be able to add httle to thofe very excellent and important 

 remarks which our readers will find in Dugald Stewart's 

 elegant and fcieutific fedion on the culture of the memory. 

 Tiie queftion wliich we have to confider is, what cultivation 

 of t]:e memory is mofl fiiited to thofe periods which are 

 ufually devoted to education. 



We cultivate the memory indiredly by every inilance in 

 which the attention is direfted to the objecls of fenfation ; 

 for the vigour and correctnefs of the memory, fo far as it 

 refpetts external objetls, mull greatly depend upon the 

 accuracy of the perception. In fonie points of view it 

 mav be confidered as the only object at which we need aim 

 with refpeft to the memory in the earlieft periods of edu- 

 cation ; for where the fenfations are duly made the objecls 

 of attention, the ftruclure of every mind probably is fuch, 

 that ideas will be received from them ; and the firli point is, 

 to gain ideas, which may become the rudiments of per- 

 ceptions, conceptions, notions, and feehngs. 



The mere formation of ideas from fenfation, is, however, 

 feldom referred to the memory ; .and though this is a molt 

 important objed, and fcrves as the bafis for every future 

 operation of the mind, it is fo clofely connected with the 

 aft of fenfation, that it can fcarcely be diftingui'.hed from 

 it. In all probabihty every imprefTion and every thought 

 which has the notice of the mind, have fome effect in mo- 

 difying or ilrengthening the correiponding ideas which were 

 previoufly formed, if they do not form new ideas ; and often 

 without our obferving the procefs : but we do not ufually 

 fpeak of fuch retention as an aft of memory, confining the 

 operation of this power to cafes in which we can bring 

 again into the view of the mind the objefts of obfervation 

 and refleftion. If the ideas produced by obL-rvation or rc- 

 fleftion have been fo much impreffed upon the mind, that 

 by aftive or paffive recolleftion they can be brought again 

 into its view as they were at firll produced, the retention 

 and recolleftion of them are confidered as operations of the 

 memory. 



As the mere retention of ideas without the power of re- 

 calling them, would be of little confequence, and as the 

 recolleftion of ideas ferves greatly to llrengthen the reten- 

 tion of them, it appears that one leading object of our aim 

 in the early culture of the memory, fliould be, to produce 

 the habit of ready, dillinft, and accurate recolleftion. Tliis 

 mull of courfe, in the commencement of inlellcftual (;ultur», 

 be employed merely upon the objects of fenfation, of which 

 the firll will be words. When a comparatively fmjll num- 

 ber of words have been acquired, tlie recolleftion fhould 

 occafionally be exercifed refpefting pail fenfations ; chieliy 

 thofe o>f fight, which are in the iirll inilance moil cafily 

 retained and recalled. By degrees, thofe which have been 

 received by the fenfe of hearing, fiiould alfo be made the 

 fubjeft of recolleftion ; partly with a view to llrengthen the 

 power of recoik'ftion, but itill more the habit of obferva- 

 tion, and of attention to thofe directions which in the early 

 periods of childhood are fo eilcntial to wuU-being, ar.d fome- 

 times evea to exillence. For feveral years. from birth, it 

 appears to us karcely defirable to exercife the memi>ry much 

 upon a connected feries of words ; the power of recolleft- 

 ing words is of great importance in a later period of the 

 mental progrefs, but in tic earlier, the firil objeft is ideas ; 

 and young chiluren fhould feldom (if ever) be required to 

 repeal words without having a clear idea of the meaning of 

 tlicm. Such ideas mull ncceifarily be deficient ; but they 

 fhould be corrcft as far as they go, and at any rate fhould 

 be fuch as the little miud can graip. If tlie hab:t of re- 



